Equality
by RenamonRoxx
Summary: Set in post Tamers universe with OCs. There will be reference to the iconic characters, tho, and probably some teamwork with them. Gonna update a lot, but only if i get reviews! Lots of action, romance, and flat out awesomeness. Read and review!
1. Chapter 1

**Heeellllooo readers! RenamonRoxxx here, dropping another story at your feet. This one i feel is my best work and i have already written 12 chapters out on it that need to be edited weekly. I will be updating all my stories twice a week if i can, but plan on only once a week. :/ I love the reviews, don't stop sending them! I will change any and all things that you find wrong, be it plot holes or errors in logic. Just please click the favorite and follow buttons. Spam them. I love seeing people interested in my stories, and will continue to write as long as those buttons are being pushed. Tell me what you think of this new story in a review, and enjoy!  
><strong>

**P.S.- If there are any DMO players out there, i am on lillethmon server under the name RenaDragon. Whisper me if ya get a chance!**

Chapter 1

We all have a little darkness in us. Some hide it, keep it hidden. Others flaunt it, letting it out on those around them. The former are regarded as heroes. The latter as villains. The truth is, people are often judged by the darkness they hold. What my judgment is, well. That is for you to decide.

My story begins on a warm, sunny Saturday in northern Georgia. No work to be done, no commitments to fill, just me, the day, and aaaalllll the time in between. I had woken up late, opting to sleep it til 10, and made myself some strong coffee and a hearty breakfast and was enjoying them outside on my back porch soaking in the sunlight. Oh, right. My name is Justin Keenan. I am 21 years old, around 5'11", and heavyset at about 250. I can hear you snickering at my weight, so stop. Anyway, I had dark brown hair and eyes as blue as a husky's, which often earned me compliments or insults, depending on who was talking. Now that intro is over, back to the back porch.

I stared blissfully off into space after I had finished eating and reclined in the wooden rocker I had set out there, idly wondering what I was going to do with my day. I was rudely disturbed, however, by a knock on the front door. I groaned and adjusted my appearance so as not to scare whoever was about to ruin my day, no matter how much they deserved it. I groggily turned the handle to the very LAST thing I wanted to see today.

"JUSTIN! Oh, it's so good to see you! How are things holding up? You don't mind if we stop in for the day, do you?" my mother asked assaulting my still waking senses with a barrage of input I needed more coffee to deal with properly. She stepped inside without waiting for an answer, revealing Dad standing behind her, multiple bags in hand. "Hello son." he said gruffly, weight from the heavy bags slumping his shoulders. "Mind helping me with these?"

Seems like I didn't have much choice, in either request, so I went out to fetch the rest of the suitcases. I lugged the ridiculously overstuffed travel cases into the guest room, hoping they didn't want to stay the night. I returned to the living room to get a few answers from my parents, who seemed less than thrilled at the condition of my house. Ignoring that, I stopped and leaned on a nearby wall, phrasing my next few questions.

"So, why are you here? If you tell me you're on some vacation trip again, then those bags would be better than in a hotel room. We both know you don't stop in for a surprise visit, especially not for an afternoon. You probably ARE on some vacation trip, but you have something to say to me before you go. So, spill. What's up?"

Mom sighed, and temporarily stopped eyeing the clothes and dirty dishes lying around on my floor and furniture. Dad looked me straight in the eyes and spoke up. "Alex, you can come in now."

The front door opened again to a large, powerful looking creature. Tan brown fur, hands tipped with claws, a mane, and a sword strapped to his back graced his appearance. Predatory eyes stared at Dad, and then at mom for a moment before resting on me. He opened his lion-like maw and spoke.

"Ah, you must be Justin. It's good to finally meet you."

He stuck a furred paw out to me in a handshake, which I met. I broke gaze with the creature to look at Dad.

"You partnered? With a leomon?" I quickly looked back to the leomon. "No offense of course, I know all leomon to be noble warriors with a good nature and sense of humor. I'm just surprised to see my Dad partnered with anyone is all. It is very nice to meet you."

Alex nodded with an acknowledging glance. Before Dad could reply, Mom spoke up. "Alecia! You can come in." A small catlike creature with yellow, gloved front paws walked in and jumped up to Mom's shoulder.

"Mom? You too? And a Gatomon! Um, nice to meet you Alecia. But how did you both get digimon, much or less champions? I thought you didn't want partners?"

Alex seemed to stiffen a bit, and Alecia just leaned her head against Mom's. "It's okay Alex, let me explain." Dad said with a comforting pat on the lion's shoulder. "Me and your mother had agreed, yes, that we didn't want digimon partners. We saw what happened in the arenas and didn't want anything to do with creatures that bent on violence."

Okay, you might be a bit confused about this point. How are digimon roaming around? Are they ruling? What is the deal with the arena? Has this guy lost his mind? Well, let me explain.

Not long after the D-Reaper was destroyed, the first tamers lost their digimon to the vortex of the Juggernaut, sucking them back to the digital world. However, as if on cue, not a few weeks later the Juggernaut backfired for the last time and instead of sucking digimon through digital gates and shutting them, it opened every gate worldwide as it started cycling in the opposite direction. Digimon bio-emerged daily and any digimon that wanted to could simply walk through the gates and into the real world, seeking tamers or just simply a new life, opting for that of a businessman, shopkeeper, laborer, or the like.

But, for reasons no one can explain, about a year later the majority of the gates shut, leaving only a few major gates still open. Also puzzling, the digimon that became partnered with a tamer after that day no longer received a digivice. The digivices of the tamers partnered before the event were analyzed and studied, but even after years of research and testing no one had managed to recreate so much as a single one. The best thing that could be done was something referred to as a scanner, which was essentially just a card slider that allowed you to use modify cards with a digimon you bonded to the device.

Those that had digivices could digivolve, making them high class citizens, and not even the governments dare mess with them. Laws were adjusted to extend citizenship to digimon, and after about a month or so of cases and reports of digimon assaulting and murdering other digimon, a provision was made for digimon to fight within boundaries, seeing as it was instilled (or installed) in their nature. Thus, the Coliseums were born, arenas where digimon could register with or without tamers and fight.

To supposedly make the sport safer, devices called data collectors, small machines designed to collect lost data, were installed in the Arenas. Whenever a digimon was defeated, it could either be absorbed by the victor or by the collectors. Once stored by the collectors, it would be reassembled in the Arena's main computer and materialized into a miniature digital plane, then bio-emerged into a small chamber nearby. It was an ingenious system, as it prevented deleted digimon from being lost forever. However, from those who had gone through the experience, it was living hell to be dismantled painfully, absorbed bit by bit, reassembled violently into a completely black and empty void, then shoved through a miniscule digital gate into a cramped cylinder that resembled a test tube.

Regardless, since it was illegal to absorb a digimon that had partnered with a human under penalty of sentence to a faux plane, it was considered safe. However, accidents still happened, like malfunctioning collectors or a victor on a rampage, so a waiver was required that exempted the arena managers from blame if a digimon was deleted permanently. So, the fights continued, cheered on by the masses, but scorned by the few. My parents were of the latter group, choosing not to be involved with creatures that made it their life to kill others for entertainment. But, despite that last statement, here they were.

"You see, we were walking by the local arena one day on our way to the store to pick up a few things. There was a riled little elecmon at the gate, trying to get into the arena to fight. I normally wouldn't have given a second glance, except that the guard was laughing at him. He was screaming furiously at the flamedramon guarding the gate, but all he did was laugh harder. Something struck me as not right, so against my better judgment and your mother's protests, I moved to see what was going on. I walked close enough to overhear the conversation…"

_*Flashback*_

"Beat it runt, you don't belong here." The elecmon got even angrier with the guard, demanding to be let in. He was trying to get into a champion level fight, which even an in-training could sign up for, but the guard would have none of it. He made fun of his size and power and outright refused to even consider letting him in. I walked closer, trying to make sense of the situation. I had to agree with the guard, he was small and probably wouldn't win, but I also thought the guard was out of line by not letting him register. It was, after all, the elecmon's choice. It seemed to be either courage or stupidity driving him, probably both, and I knew he wouldn't stop til he was either allowed in or dead. So I intervened and suggested the only thing I could think of.

"Why don't you two fight? Nonlethally, of course. If the guard wins, you walk away and don't come back to the arena. If you win, he admits you are stronger and will let you register and never bother you again."

"Fine, but I am gonna smear the poor kid." The guard said arrogantly, taking a fighting stance.

Before I let them start, though, I leaned in to elecmon and game him a final piece of advice. "Listen son, I hate fighting and I hate this place and what goes on here. That being said, I am helping you out because despite what I think you seem to have a reason behind this fight. If you are going to fight, fight for a reason, and a damn good one. Don't fight pointlessly, whatever power you get isn't worth it."

I have never seen anything so small move so fast in my life. The flamedramon even fought a little dirty, but even still the elecmon had him on the ground, teeth at his throat. He stood shakily after tapping out, rolling a sore shoulder.

"Alright kid, I have to admit, you got some potential. You can go ahead and sign up and head in, I'll even give you a recommendation."

But, much to my surprise, the elecmon simply nodded to the guard and walked away, leaving the guard dumbfounded at the gate. I walked over to him and stopped him, trying to figure out why he was leaving.

"There was a reason to fight the guard. He didn't respect me, and would continue to bully people at the gate. There was no reason to keep fighting inside."

_*End Flashback*_

Alex spoke up after Dad finished the story. "You showed me there was more to life than fighting, and earned my trust and respect."

"And you showed me there are fights worth fighting, if fought with honor and purpose behind them. I realized not all digimon were violent, and shortly after we became good friends. We became linked, and he moved in with us, and now here we are." Dad replied, smiling and punching Alex in the shoulder lightly. "Speaking of honor, you owe me a rematch for cheating at cards yesterday."

Alex grinned and mocked rubbing his shoulder. "I have no idea what you're talking about. Leomon are an honorable and powerful race, and would never cheat, much less lose, to a human." They both laughed to themselves and walked off to pick up a card game. This still left Mom and Alecia. I turned to the pair, a few questions still left unanswered. Mom explained.

"I found Alecia scrounging for scraps through the garbage as a salamon not long after we found Alex. With a bit of begging, your father let me keep her, and together we eventually partnered. She went out one morning as she usually did to do a morning round of her territory like you'd figure most dogs do. But she didn't come back for hours, and when she did she was covered in cuts and bruises. A stray agumon had found her wandering around and thought he would use her to get stronger so he could fight in the arena. She'd beat him, but barely. After that, we decided that champion level would be necessary for both Alex and Alecia and we worked hard to make it happen.

After a lot of searching, we finally found a tail ring that enabled her next level with little to no data. The owner wanted a, well, a mate for the night in exchange for the ring, which flat out wasn't happening. Outraged that he'd been rejected, he attacked us both and we were forced into deleting him. Alecia took the ring, absorbed the data, and she digivolved to Gatomon! As for Alex, it took a bit longer. Alex had a lot of the necessary data already stored from previous fights, and your father scrimped and scrounged and used the money to buy up every bit of spare data he could find or bargain for. Even still, it was close, so they eventually settled on one fight, and only with a dark type digimon. They went into the Coliseum, registered for the fight, beat their opponent and absorbed the data. It triggered the digivolution to Leomon and they both just walked out. They don't like to talk about it much, but the truth is they needed Alex to digivolve. It wasn't pretty getting to this level, son. It never is, but now we can protect ourselves and our partners. And they are thrilled with the added power, right Ally?"

The cat yawned and nodded, speaking for the first time. "Yeah, I don't mind a fight or two, but a life dedicated to it I think is a waste of time. I wasn't any happier about the circumstances we needed to digivolve any more than Alex was, trust me, but it's worked out well for both of us. Besides, now we can protect them." She said, nestling into her tamer's neck. "I don't know what I'd do if I ever lost Sarah."

Mom scratched the tip of her head and smiled. "Same here Alecia. Now, if you'll excuse me, I've had a long and rough trip and would like to catch up some sleep while I can. We'll be taking off in an hour, we have tickets for a cruise ship leaving today, and we just wanted to tell you the news in person."

Well… huh. Just like them, to drop a bomb in my lap and run off to have fun. But, as for the news, that was, interesting. My parents had digimon, and had gone against their better nature to protect them and get them to digivolve. It seemed like they were growing to like each other very well. With Mom and Alecia catnapping, (ouch, sorry) and Alex and Dad locked in a card game and heated discussion, I decided that this'd be a good time to take a walk to sort out all this new info. I snatched my earbuds and phone and walked outside, stretching and blinking my eyes to adjust to the sunlight.

Switching to my Linkin Park tracks, I jogged a good half mile down the road, passing rows of houses as modern as well kempt as mine. I rounded a street corner and started towards town, slowing down to a cooldown walk. I finally reached town and kept walking with no real direction, passing numerous human and digimon vendors selling various foods, wares, and odds and ends. Ever since digimon started pouring into the human world, technology started advancing rapidly due to even the simplest creature's knowledge of the devices. Real advancements were just starting to be made as the technology was put to use. Everything form phones to cars to streetlights to vacuum cleaners were powered with clean, renewable energy transmitted to them wirelessly. Seeing as it was so widely available, the energy was free. Cars were sleeker and no longer put out waste gases, phones were thinner, and new technologies came out on the market every day, not to mention hundreds of prototypes. Things were looking up for us bipedal morons.

I realized I was just stalling, and my thoughts began to drift to my parents and their digimon partners. They willing gave up the misgivings they had of fighting when their partners needed them, and it was a huge change from the way they were before. I guess this was sort of an apology, for the way they treated me so long ago. I wanted a partner now more than ever, but I had a high set of standards that I was unwilling to break. I never had qualms about a good fight; I just didn't go around _looking_ for trouble. As such many potential partners passed me by because they wanted to duke it out in the arena and become stronger. I let 'em. They didn't need me scanning cards for them; they could strap a scanner to their arm (if they had one) and do it themselves. No, I was looking for someone who was not obsessed with power, or a free meal ticket. Not to say I was complacent with my circumstances right now, as a matter of fact I hated the dull life I had right now. But I was patient.

A sudden shout and the scene of people gathering in a crowd jarred me from my thoughts and drew my attention. I pulled my earbuds out, letting them dangle down my shirt still playing music. I pushed a few people aside and moved to the front to catch a glimpse of what was going on.

A teenager with his hands in his pockets stood next to a rather large, muscle-bound, male Renamon. The large kitsune was towering over a much shorter and feminine Renamon as she was picking herself up off the ground. The Tamer looked completely disinterested, even yawning and observing the crowds idly.

I didn't like the look of the situation, but held my temper for now. I didn't have all the facts. "So, what's going on here?" I asked in the friendliest tone of voice I could manage.

The male took one look at me and snorted, turning his attention back to the female. "Beat it kid, this doesn't concern you." His tamer sidled up to me, all cocky and arrogant. "You better be getting back in that crowd, this isn't your business, k?" he said, smiling and patting me on my shoulder. My anger flared, but I kept it in check still. I had to redouble my efforts when the girl finally managed to stand and stare defiantly back into the eyes of the male, only to be hit back to the ground again.

"You have no say in the matter runt. Come with me quietly, the decision's already been made by your parents." The male said to her, fist still clenched in a threat. "You're lucky that ANY digimon would want you, much less one of your own species. You should feel honored to be chosen as my mate."

The female stood back up shakily, one more time. She looked roughed up, like she had been through a grueling fight already, and didn't have any strength to fight back. But yet, she continued her defiant stare. "I will NOT allow my PARENTS, who don't give a shit about me, to decide my future. I will not let myself be raped and pushed around for the rest of my life simply because they gave me away to some two bit tamer and his flea-ridden DIGIMON!"

The male got enraged at this and hit her again, harder this time. She didn't get back up, lying on the ground barely conscious, barely breathing. "Get up!" He screamed at her still, and took a step closer. "GET UP!" She just lay there, unwilling or incapable of responding. He reared back a foot to kick her while she was down, completely helpless to stop him. And with that final action I snapped.

In the exact moment he pulled back his foot I'd closed the distance and pulled back my fist. With as much power and anger as I could muster, I shot a punch straight into the left side of his face. It had the desired effect, stunning him and sending him sprawling several feet from the girl.

Wasting no time, I pulled out the emergency scanner I kept on my and ran her finger across the code binder, ramming a hyper chip card though as fast as I could. I helped her to her feet, hoping she had enough energy and anger left for one more fight. "Think you can handle him?" I asked her. She nodded, steadying herself and dropped into a combative stance. Good. An angry teenage tamer, that I could handle. An angry, muscled Renamon? Not a chance. I flipped through the deck and scanned a hyper speed activate card and refocused my attention on the furious tamer charging at me.

Facing my opponent, I dodged to the right as he tried to tackle me, then a mean right hook intended to smash my skull in. I returned by delivering a heavy hit to his solar plexus, driving the air out of his lungs and doubling him over. From this position, I uppercut his face and when he leaned back from the blow I delivered a final kick to his exposed, well, sensitives.

Needless to say, he was down for the count, allowing me to get back to scanning cards for my Renamon while he could do nothing for his. She was holding her own pretty well, dodging every hit the male dished out, but when she tried to hit back it did little to nothing. She was good, that much was certain, but with the right tools… "Power activate!" …she could be better.

She seemed to glow red, brimming from the extra power, and the next time she hit him it almost brought him to his knees. He was powerful, but she was faster and stronger now and without a partner to scan for him he was soon beaten and battered. He even fuzzed out a time or two when she was finished with him, and with a hideous glare and flick of his tail he picked up his downed tamer and phased away without so much as a word. The girl stared at the spot a moment, and then turned away contemptuously, her eyes losing their hate as they came to rest on me. She regarded me for a moment, as if deciding what to do.

"Thank you for stepping in to help me, but I am afraid I have nothing to give you."

"No need, glad I could help."

"I have to leave now, I can't stay. May I see the scanner?"

I handed the scanner to her, and with a nod and not another word she turned and walked away. She made it three steps before she collapsed, unconscious.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hello again. No, i am not dead. Sorry for the late update on this one, there was a LOT of stuff i wanted to change and ideas and time were robbed from me by work. But! Without further ado, i present ch. 2 of Equality. **

Chapter 2 (Renamon's POV)

I blinked my eyes to adjust, trying to stand up. I was on a couch, not pavement anymore. As I shifted, I realized I was sore, but no longer in pain. A blanket was neatly tucked over me and as my eyes focused I saw, not a face willed with contempt, but with concern. Nonetheless, I reacted without thinking, jumping to land deftly behind whatever and whoever had taken me.

Unfortunately all I managed was a rough jolt on the couch, sending adrenaline through sore and unresponsive muscles. Seeing this, my captor decided it was a good idea to give room, stepping back but keeping watch. Why was I here? The last thing I remember was a fight, some random guy had stepped in to help, and I was walking away to find a place to recoup when…

"You fell shortly after the fight. My best guess is that hyperchip card wore off too quickly and you didn't have the time to recover. I picked you up and carried you here, this is my house. I sealed up what wounds I could and gave you a anesthetic program to ease the pain while you heal. You should be okay and moving in a few minutes."

I willed myself to calm back down, taking in my surroundings. Wait a minute, he looks familiar.

"Are you the man that hit that other Renamon?"

He smiled at this and nodded his head. "Yeah, well. I refused to let him beat up on you, least of all in public. No one, be it human or digimon, should treat their mate like that. Nice fighting, by the way. He was twice your size yet you held your own quite well."

I shifted again, feeling beginning to return to my extremities as the anesthetic wore off, its job done. "It was nothing, really. The cards you used were very well thought out. You must have practiced with your partner a lot to master card strategy that well."

He seemed to shift uncomfortably, and a hint of sadness flashed across his features at that last statement, but responded nonetheless.

"No, I have no partner, but I did spend a long time working on card strategy. You never know when you may come across someone who needed help, like today. I am still looking for a partner; they all seem content to fight in the arena their whole lives." His eyes lit up for a second, looking at me. "Unless…"

"No." I said quickly. I had no intention of being anyone's so called 'partner' and slaving away my life for them. No, a tamer would only mess with my plans, my life. I couldn't have some human soaking up credit for MY success. I would be better off alone. Besides… "I plan to head out as soon as I am able. I'm sorry, being partnered wouldn't suit me. I don't think I could sit here and do nothing for the rest of my life."

He chuckled, an odd reaction seeing as I'd just told him off. I couldn't for the life of me figure out why.

"What?"

"How do you think I feel? Out of all the digimon I've met not one, NOT ONE, wants to do anything more with their life than fight for power in the arena or sit around and waste their life away doing nothing in a dead end job. So I have been forced to sit here, waiting for a partner that never comes. One by one they walk out that door, some without a second glance. All I ever wanted was someone who wanted more than this, to go out and explore, not just this world but the digital world. To adventure, explore, discover, and maybe even figure something out about ourselves, become better people. Instead, I am stuck here, alone, running in circles. I wish the digivices would come back, at least then I would know if I was meant for more than this."

I was stunned. He seemed carefree, content, and even easygoing. But underneath the surface, he was anxious, nervous, and unstable; Discontent with his life. I could empathize, but I just couldn't go with him, I had my own goals to pursue. No, he was better off waiting here for a different partner, and I was better off without a tamer.

"I am sorry. I'm not what you're looking for. I hope you will find what you're looking for someday. Thank you for all that you've done, but I have to go."

I stood up, shakily at first but steadier as I moved towards the door. Party of me wanted to stay, but I knew that I couldn't trust him. If life had taught me anything, it's that you can't trust anyone. No matter how much you want to. It didn't stop me from turning around for one last look into his eyes. And that was when I felt it.

A tug, a pull, and undeniable urge. A sudden realization, a light in his eyes. Both of us knew. Neither was able to turn away. It only lasted a moment, fleeting as quickly as it came. But it felt like a lifetime. All my hopes, all my dreams were gone. All my training, all my suffering was for nothing.

I could try and resist, run out the door, try to live the way I wanted, but I knew it would be useless. It was undeniable. Almost like someone had taken a chain and bound us together. We were bonded, linked.

We were partnered.

"Oh no."

(Justin's POV)

She pushed her back against the wall, sliding down until she was sitting on the floor in the fetal position. She buried her head in her knees, hands clawing at her head. I knew it too. We were partnered, a lifetime bond that rarely ever broke.

"What's up? I thought… this is supposed to be good! Partnership itself is a power boost, and now I can scan for you, so you won't be pushed around anymore. Why are you so upset?" I asked her, bothered by the fact she hated even the idea of being my partner.

She mumbled something into her thighs, not looking at me, remaining buried up against the wall. Sighing, I joined her by the wall, sinking down the same way she did. I don't know why I did; it just seemed like the right thing to do. She cracked an eye to look at me, as if gauging my reaction.

To be honest, I was mostly dejected. I spent my whole life looking for a partner who would join me, stick with me thick and thin and enjoy exploring and traveling across not just my home but theirs, the digital world. Not many humans ever ventured out of the cities in the digital world, it was dangerous, even for tamers with digivices. Now my only chance was blown, partnered with a digimon that didn't even want to be partnered.

She cocked an eyebrow, obviously confused by my reaction. Momentarily distracted from her own feelings, she pulled her head up to look at me. "What's the matter with you? I thought you'd be glad about this."

"I wanted someone who…" I let out a breath, frustrated at the lack of words to express my feelings. "Someone who wanted me, wanted a partnership, wanted more out of life! Not just power and money in the arena, or a ticket to carefree life. You obviously didn't even want a partner, which I guess makes it even worse. Not only am I not getting what I want, I've obviously messed with your life, and in the process I've messed up both our lives." I buried my head in MY knees now, felling the pressure of my failures weighing down on me. I had messed up. Again. Adding to a large list of failures I had been building up.

She noticed my rapid downward spiral and pulled my arm down, forcing eye contact. She had worry worth on her face, something rare for a renamon to display emotion at all, much less that.

"That's not all of it. That may be a part of it, but it's not the whole reason. You're not telling me the truth. What's going on?"

I sighed; frustrated I wasn't even able to hide one stupid thing from her. Within 45 seconds of being partnered too. I uncurled, bracing myself for what I had to tell her. We were stuck together for life, she might as well know.

"This is not my first time being partnered."

Her worry changed to surprise, and then quickly shifted back to the expressionless stare that was trademark to all renamon. Probably bracing herself, same as me. I pushed forward, words falling like water from a broken dam.

"Her name was Sasha, an agumon. We were partnered back when digivices were still given to tamers, we were perfect together, and no matter the odds stacked against us we always won. Then one day we were fighting and… and I screwed up, okay? I let my own stupid head get in the way. She… she didn't make it. She was deleted and absorbed and all I could do was watch and scream. It was my fault."

I gripped a necklace I kept under my shirt, a symbol no one had ever seen but me and her. And that wouldn't change with Renamon.

"She always wanted to go back and explore the digital world. She was always saying how she would like to visit her old village, see this mountain, that river. If it wasn't for me, she just might've. But now she's gone, and I was left with the hope that someday I could explore it for her. Down to this day I've been searching for someone who will go with me into the digital world to explore, just like she wanted. Like I wanted. I'm sorry I ruined your life, just because I can't let go of a stupid dream, as if it could bring me closer to her."

Renamon stayed quiet while I told my sob story, patiently listening. By the end of it I was in tears, reliving the incident over and over. Only I knew the truth of what happened that day, and it would continue that way, regardless of the fact Renamon was stuck with me for life. Separating was a nightmarish process; both parties would be sickly, weak, and tired for years before the symptoms went away. Partnership was supposed to last forever. She scooted closer to me, rubbing my shoulder consolingly at a total loss of what to do. She was doing the best she could, renamon generally avoided emotions like black plague, and her I was, a crying mess on the floor.

"It's okay," she said, "my plans don't seem as noble as yours. Besides, you don't control who you are partnered with, the digignomes do that. There must be a reason we were put together, and if I can live with that, so can you."

Her words comforted me a little, and eventually I pulled myself back to reality. Stopping up the tears, fixing my expression, restoring non-self-pity thought processes. I pulled myself up off the floor, lending a hand to bring her back to her feet.

"Okay, whew. *sniffle* Now that that's over with. No turning back now, we're stuck together. I don't know where to go from here but we have a WHOLE lot of time to figure that out. For now, I'm hungry. What kinda food you like?"


	3. Chapter 3

After giving me the standard Renamon fare of 'I have no preference,' I finally decided that for now some Mexican food would be good for now. Making a mental note to draw her out of her shell in one way or another, for the moment I ignored the problem and we drove to the nearest restaurant I could think of.

As we sped thru town, my thoughts drifted to my parents again. I had called ahead to them before I had picked up Renamon, opting to tell them I'd run across friends in town and I had offered them room and board for a couple of days. They packed up quickly and left, saying something about taking off for someplace exotic or another; they just had stopped by to tell me the news in person.

I was glad, mainly. They would blow all the money I gave them on their vacations, completely distracted and as far from me as possible. I could delay telling them about Renamon for as long as I needed. I don't know why, I guess telling them worried me, more than I may realize.

As we arrived at the restaurant, I noticed how uncomfortable Renamon was. She was tense, icy blue irises darting all over the room. Her fists were clenched, and she seemed like she was ready to run or fight at any moment. Deciding to ease her into the public scene, eating this at home was probably a better option until she was more at ease.

To be honest I couldn't blame her. After what happened today…

Back home, I discovered she absolutely loved Mexican food, and almost ravenously tore away at the meal. I ate my burritos fairly quickly too, apparently I was hungrier than I realized.

I watched her out of the corner of my eye the entire time, trying to come up with a good way to get her to warm up to me. She managed to keep this… air about her, even when she was shoveling food in her mouth. There had to be a way.

"So, what's up for tomorrow? Aside from a small project I've been working on, my schedule is pretty free. What about you?"

She seemed to think for a moment, pushing her empty plate away. "I usually train."

I did a double take. Renamon as a species were known for their rigorous routine and strict self-discipline, but…"You mean ALL DAY?! You don't take breaks, relax, watch movies, nothing?"

She shook her head in response. "No."

Baffled, but curious, I saw an opportunity. Beggars can't be choosers. "Would you mind if I joined you?"

She almost choked. "You. Want to… train. With me?" She seemed shocked, not at all what I had expected. "Yeah, I mean that's what you're interested in. Besides, I could use some pointers from someone who knows fighting styles, and who knows them better than you?"

"So… you want me… to train you?"

"No! Not like that. I don't want to make you my personal trainer or anything like that. I just need a few pointers to start off, and to adjust to your normal routine. Whaddya say?"

She thought it over a moment more, her eyes roving over me as if judging how much she would have to slow down for me. She finally sighed and shrugged. "Very well. But I'll warn you. This isn't like any training program you've ever seen. At times, it can be excruciating."

Renamon rose and cleared her spot, placing the dirty dishes into the sink. "I usually start at about 5:00 in the morning. So, if you still want to join…" she trailed off with a shrug.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Be up god-awful early. I got it. I wonder if you really do get up this early or whether you're just trying to stop me from training with you."

She actually smiled, the first time since I'd seen her. It only lasted a fraction of a second, but it suited her. "Is there a bedroom I may stay in? I don't have the money for a hotel or a place of my own yet."

I looked at her dumbfounded. "As long as I can still breathe you won't be finding a hotel room or another place to stay. I have a room right over here." I spoke firmly with a gesture to the guest room. I opened the door to show her inside. "It isn't much, but I want you to feel at home. Whatever you need you can keep in here, and feel free to decorate as you please. If you need anything, anything at all, please don't hesitate to ask."

She nodded and sat down on the bed. "Thank you. What is your name?"

I resisted the urge to facepalm. In all the commotion I had forgotten to tell her my own name.

"Justin. Justin Keenan. What do I call you?"

"Renamon will do."

"Goodnight Renamon. See you tomorrow morning."

I shut the door on my way out, giving her some privacy. I went about my nightly routine of tidying up my home, brushing my teeth, and climbing into bed after turning on the fan. Given the day's events, I had no time to think, I was asleep almost instantly.

"I didn't think you would go thru with it," Renamon commented as I walked out the back door to join her for her morning exercises.

"I didn't either."

A 4:30 alarm viciously silenced, a pot of coffee, and a granola bar breakfast led be to believe much the same thing as she did. However, I was determined to bridge the gap between me and my newfound partner. A few sleep circles around the eyes and some tough exercise wasn't that bad in the scheme of things.

"Well, to begin I usually stretch," Renamon stated, demonstrating, "then a walk that escalates into a jog, and finally a run. Understand?"

I nodded, copying her stretches. She started a brisk walk, heading from the backyard to the sidewalk out in front. After about ten minutes, she looked behind and gave one final piece of advice.

"Try to keep up."

"That… *huff* isn't… *huff* fair. *huff* Not even a little. *huff* *huff*"

The jog was fast, and by the end of that, I needed a breather. THEN she broke into a run, leaving me to sprint as fast as I could behind her as she sped around the empty street corners. By the end of that I needed an oxygen tank and heart attack medication. I did my best not to let on, but that didn't say much.

"You actually did a lot better than I thought you would do," the vixen replied, barely even showing she'd just sprinted half a mile. "I fully expected to have to go back for you."

"Gee thanks. *huff* Wow, I haven't done that in a loooong while. Kinda let my exercise routine go since I stopped pouring concrete. I needed a good kick to get back into shape. Okay! What's next?"

She gave me the same look as earlier, obviously surprised I was continuing. Okay, so a few sleep circles around the eyes, some exercise, and a few trips to the hospital. Nothing I couldn't handle. All in the name of partnership.

"I do a cooldown with a bit of yoga, my own style of course. Are you sure you want to…"

Yes, stop asking that. Believe it or not I'm a bit more flexible than I look."

She shrugged and moved to the first pose, bending gracefully as she shifted. She gave a brief glance to see if I was doing it correctly. "You have to move for it to be yoga," Renamon stated matter-of-factly noticed I hadn't moved from my standing position.

I managed to dislodge my eyes from her form, cheeks burning red, and moved into the first pose. Even still, it was hard not to stare, which felt very, very wrong to begin with. She was a digimon for god's sake! I tried to focus on copying her motions and posture, but it was difficult, watching her flow from pose to pose, eyes shut in concentration. It was like artwork in motion, compounded by the fact she was a very… feminine looking Renamon... "OOF!" Losing concentration I wasn't paying attention and lost my balance, crashing in an extremely uncomfortable position on the ground.

Sighing, Renamon just held her pose, waiting for me to get back into position. I did, my cheeks burning impossibly redder than before.

I managed to make it through the rest of yoga without any more incidents, although I did catch myself staring a time or two again. I was a far cry from the balance and grace she had.

"How'd I do?" I dared to ask, anxious as to how I was matching up to her standards.

"Not as bad as I expected." Oh great. THAT line again. "You need more balance and flexibility and _focus_," she said with a glance in my direction, "based on the yoga. And judging by the run, you need more endurance and speed." She stated, ticking off the points on her fingers. "The muscles needed seem to be there, although out of shape and nowhere near the necessary level of training. Regardless, the next step is combat training. I usually practice advanced moves and techniques but for now I'll show you the basics."

She actually seemed to enjoy teaching me various blocks, punches, and kicks from every sort of training from karate to judo into a blend of her own style. I went along with her, smiling to myself. This was her element, and it seemed she enjoyed not just practicing but also teaching me how to fight and defend myself. I took that note and stuck it in the back of my head to use later.

"Not bad," she said with an approving nod, "if you keep training you'll be up to a decent skill level within a few weeks, if not sooner. Now, I usually find another digimon and spar, but I think you'll do fine for now."

"Woah, woah, WOAH. How in the hell is this fair? You are a DIGIMON. I am a HUMAN. You have every single advantage, except for size."

She frowned at my last comment, but answered nonetheless. "Has no one explained this to you?" She sighed. "Digimon get their strength from two places. One is from energy. Energy comes from eating, digivolving, cards, data, from tamers, and can be exchanged from digimon to digimon. Energy is what gives us our special attacks, as well as out inhuman speed and strength.

"However, there is also a physical strength to us as well, same as with humans. That comes from training and sparring, exercise, and the like. Digimon train and spar to get stronger physically and to supplement our energy. A smart digimon will train their physical body as well as their energy, so even if their energy runs out they can still fight or escape.

"I will be using only physical strength, but even though I may be_ small_, I am probably a bit stronger than you, and have far more experience. Since you are a beginner, I will go easy on you."

Oh, so that's how she's gonna play it, eh? Well, time for a wakeup call.

"Are you ready?" she asked.

"Ready," I replied with a grin.

I dropped into an offensive stance and quickly approached, tripping her and pinning her before she had time to react. She was honestly and genuinely surprised, and to see it scrawled on her face was enjoyable.

"Okay, so I practiced my fighting skills at varying gyms and self-defense classes, and just happened to be one of the best. I made it a point back when I was still partnered; I wouldn't make Sasha do all the work. Sorry if I deceived you, it seemed like you had fun teaching."

I let her up, prepping for the worst. Instead, she had a wicked grin on her face. She cracked her knuckles as she leveled her gaze at me. "Noooo. This is good. This is very good. Now I don't have to hold back." Renamon moved back a few feet, taking a stance. "Ready?"

Before I could answer she had closed the distance between us and I had to dodge quickly to avoid the first of a flurry of punches. I put some space back between us as we both started to circle each other. We both tested each other's reactions. A punch, a block, a kick, a dodge, all in sync to the other party as we continued to circle each other.

Finally, I noticed she favored using her large feet to counter after blocking or dodging whatever I threw at her. Taking advantage of this, I let her approach and dodged a punch with a swing to the left. I threw a jab of my own which she blocked with ease, and just as expected she moved to kick me with one of her rabbit-like paws. Instead of dodging, I used the split second to land a punch to her chest, knocking the wind out of her and throwing her kick off. I used my own foot to sweep her other foot out from under her and pinned her, using my extra weight against her. She tried desperately to get me off, seeing as I was using my elbow to restrict her air flow. It was a tactical move; I was trying to get her to tap out faster. Her eyes widened, and she panicked. She had to have used energy, seeing as she wrenched her limbs from my pin faster than I could see, punching me in the solar plexus, giving her enough room to coil her legs and slam me away.

Unfortunately, this also launched me a good ten feet in the air. _Oh, this is gonna hurt_, I thought miserably.

I crashed into the ground, hard, but I didn't just stop there. I bounced up another two feet, still flying backwards as I collided again with the unforgiving ground. I finally rolled to a halt, a groan escaping my lips.

Renamon was by me in a flash, checking me over for serious injury. Luckily I had hit in the grass, and no real damage was done, save for a couple LARGE bruises. She picked me up, which I thought was weird, in a strange, fractured sort of way. _I should be picking her up that way… _I thought.

"You shouldn't carry me like this," I said, an unusual feeling overtaking me. She had started to carry me inside, but stopped on the back porch.

"Why?" she asked, worry and confusion creeping into her voice.

"Put me down and I'll show you."

Curious, she set me down, if nothing else to see if I could stand. "So why shouldn't I carry you like that?"

I scooped her up bridal style before she could protest. "Ishould be carrying YOU like this."

Renamon, sensing something was off, went along with it. I carried her over to the couch and laid her down. True, my bruises hurt immensely, but years of working in concrete and construction in some of the most brutal conditions had given me a way to cope with pain and do what was needed. This involved two things.

One, the extreme tolerance to pain and ability to push past and sometimes ignore it. Often, this came at the price of…

Two. The partial loss of mental control. I cracked jokes constantly, lost all brain-mouth filtration, and generally acted like someone fed me a live wire. To put it in a nutshell, I became crazy in my own way.

Go ahead, laugh. It dulls the pain and lets me finish jobs accomplish things no one thought possible. What is said and done is usually not that bad. And this all comes at the low, monthly cost of a small bit of sanity! Oh, sorry. There it is again.

After resting her on the couch, I went to the kitchen and flash boiled some water on the stove. (Gotta love digimon tech.) I emerged a moment later with a cup of herbal tea, no sweetener and handed it to Renamon, then settled on the couch to nurse my own cup of earl grey tea.

After I took a sip I started talking to fill in the awkward silence.

"Sorry about choking you, I really am. I was just trying to get you to tap out; I would never ever threaten your life like that, Never. In a million years. You're the first digimon that's even given me two bits, much or less stuck around. Well, I suppose you ARE stuck with me in a way. I-I'm sorry for dragging you into this. Now I've messed up your routine AND my ribs, and… I'm… well… sorry."

I finally calmed down, the tea working its way through my system, sanity returning along with a great deal of pain, but now bearable. She quietly observed me from over the rim of her mug, regarding me with that emotionless gaze Renamon have mastered so well.

Seeing as my episode was over, she decided to ask a few questions. "Okay, so what was that about? I almost killed you, and you want to be all friendly and chivalrous and carry me and apologize to me? What is going on?"

That was the question wasn't it. How do you explain years of difficulty in a harsh work environment, and the mechanism you got just to deal with it? I still can't explain why I picked her up; it just seemed like the right thing to do. Neither of these explanations would do, so I just had to tell the truth and hope she didn't just take off running.

"I, um, well… you see… *sigh* Okay. You deserve the truth. I honestly don't know. When I get hurt, get pushed past my breaking point, it kind of kicks in. I lose control and I act kinda crazy. Sometimes I don't even remember big chunks of what I do during that time. It's kind of a side effect of pushing myself so hard for so many years. Sorry if I made you uncomfortable.

She seemed to cock her head to the side, as if taking it in. Great. That came out sounding like I'm insane. Well, I kind of am… but that's not the point. I just… keep making her feel like she got the most broken tamer in the world. I wouldn't want to partner with me. I hung my head in shame, waiting for her to explode, call me crazy, or worse.

But she didn't.

"Interesting. You seemed to be fine a moment ago, but now it seems like you are in a lot of pain. Whatever that is or what made it, it seems to work. Don't apologize, like I said, I almost killed you. Besides," she said with a coy look at me, "who's to say I didn't like being carried?"

I did a double take, but she had shifted back to the emotionless stare, nonchalantly sipping on her tea. I sat for a full minute and a half stunned speechless trying to come up with some sort of reply to that before she finally broke down and laughed. It was the first time I'd heard her laugh. It was a pure, perfect sound. I chuckled and shook my head.

"Well, it's good to know you have a crazy side too. Though it took me flying thirty feet and a set of bruised ribs to get you to show it."

She changed back to serious, looking me dead in the eye. "I am sorry. It is my fault that you are injured and I…"

I cut her off. "No, it is my fault if anyone's. I don't blame you; you've had to protect your life from things like that, being a digimon. I should've thought of that." When it looked like she was about to argue, I cut her off again. "If it's not my fault it's no ones. Least of all yours. Nothing we can do about it now. The past, no matter how recent, is the past. Let it rest."

She stayed quiet for a moment, then set her tea down and walked over to me.

"Very well, at least let me help. Lay down."

"I'm sorry, we just met, and…"

She rolled her eyes. "Don't even start." I chuckled and complied, curious as to what she was about to do. She seemed to concentrate for a moment, then outstretched both of her arms.

"Power Paw!"

In a flash, both of her forearms down to her fingertips were coated in an ethereal, glowing blue fire that matched her eyes. She looked down to me, relaying further instructions.

"Now hold still, from what I'm told this feels very weird, but it's important for you not to move too much, okay?"

I nodded and held as still as possible. She reached down and removed my shirt with a slice of a claw, the fire surprisingly not so much as singing the edges. Her palms hovered half and inch from my torso, the flames licking across the damaged skin as they spread over the bruised areas. Then, much like the fire itself, her arms slowly faded until you could see through them, like she was a ghost. Her hands passed through my skin, spreading the fire, relieving pain from the inside out.

It felt strange, having something actually pass through you, almost as if it were catching and giving a slight tug on every molecule it touched. It was painless however, and in short order she had finished her work, letting the fire spark off of her paws and go out. Upon examination, both the bruises and pain had vanished, completely healed.

She examined her hands, musing. "Fire has always had healing properties. The fire from my attacks is slightly out of phase, and is a powerful force for healing or inflicting damage, depending on how I use it."

I stood, feeling not so much as a stiff joint. As a matter of fact I felt better than I had in a long time. "I feel great! Thank you so much. Ready for another sparring match?"

This earned a 'what-the-crap-are-you-thinking' look from renamon, who stood there dumbfounded for a full minute before I busted out laughing. I was glad I had gotten her on the other end of that stick. She smiled and chuckled with me.

"Maybe tomorrow. So, what now? I don't normally stop training until I dinnertime, so I am a bit at a loss."

I grinned, seeing as how my original bonding plan had worked, at least to some degree. She seemed to at least accept partnership for now. It felt good. I'd also had an idea.

"Come with me. I'll show you my new job."


End file.
